CoStar Buys Tennessee Data Provider

CoStar Group Inc. has agreed to buy Peer Market Research Inc. (PeerMark), an online commercial real estate information provider in Memphis and Nashville, Tenn. The price was undisclosed, and the merger is still subject to PeerMark shareholder approval, among other terms. It’s anticipated that the transaction will close in May.

PeerMark provides subscription-based commercial real estate information to roughly 60 brokerage firms and property owners in Memphis and Nashville. The firm is approximately 66% owned by members of the local commercial real estate markets in Memphis and Nashville.

"We're excited about this opportunity to expand our service offerings with these two important cities," said Andrew Florance, president & CEO of CoStar. "Memphis and Nashville are major industrial hubs in the Southeast. Most of the major industrial property REITs have a presence in these markets, as do the leading national and regional service providers."

PeerMark currently tracks roughly 3,400 office, industrial and retail properties encompassing more than 326 million sq. ft. in the two markets.

"We're excited about joining with CoStar," said PeerMark Chairman Wyatt Aiken. "We view it as the next step in our commitment to provide commercial real estate professionals in Tennessee with the most accurate real estate information."

Beyond Memphis and Nashville, CoStar is expanding its geographic coverage into 19 new markets this year and next. "We plan to enter most of these markets organically," said Florance. "However, we believe strategic acquisitions like the PeerMark opportunity can significantly accelerate our development of these new markets."